LC-OCT Imaging for Studying the Variation of Morphological Properties of Human Skin In Vivo According to Age and Body area: The Forearm and the Thigh

¹Université de Lyon, 36 avenue Guy de Collongue, Ecully, France

²Laboratoires Clarins, 5 Rue Ampère, Pontoise, France

³DAMAE MEDICAL, 14 Rue Sthrau, Paris, France

*Corresponding author: Meriem Ayadh, Université de Lyon École Centrale de Lyon, 36 avenue Guy de Collongue, Ecully, France. Email: [email protected]

Citation: Ayadh M, et al. (2022). LC-OCT Imaging for Studying the Variation of Morphological Properties of Human Skin In Vivo According to Age and Body area: The Forearm and the Thigh. Dermis. 2(1):2.

Received: October 12, 2022
Published: November 9, 2022

Copyright: Ayadh M, et al. © (2022).

ABSTRACT

The interest of in vivo skin imaging is obvious for both dermatology and cosmetology. It allows an in-depth view of the skin and consequently of the evolution of the tissues. For noninvasive imaging techniques, the two important parameters are resolution and depth of penetration. In this study, we use Line-field Confocal Optical Coherence Tomography (LC-OCT) imaging. This technique provides two image modes of human skin in vivo with very high spatial resolution: vertical and horizontal section images. Thanks to the two modalities of LCOCT, it is possible to obtain full 3D images of the skin’s volume. From these images, it is possible to characterize, in vivo and with the same acquisition, the variation in the thickness of the skin layers (epidermis and papillary dermis), the length and the amplitude of the dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ), and the density and the diameter of fibers in the papillary dermis according to age and body area, in this case, the forearm and the thigh.

The study was carried out on 42 volunteers representing two age groups: a young group [20–30] years old and an elderly group [45 – 55] years old. The aim of this study was to quantitatively characterize the morphological parameters of human skin in vivo and their variability as a function of age and body area. The quantitative analysis of the skin structure in depth shows the dependence of this structure on both factors: age and body area. The results show that the thickness of the skin layers decreases with age. The thickness of the papillary dermis is related to the density of the fibers it contains, the higher the density of the fibers in the papillary dermis, the thicker it is. The dermal-epidermal junction tends to flatten out with aging, especially for the forearm. These results could provide a better understanding of the mechanical properties of the skin and establish new models of reconstructed skin by taking into account the variability of the skin according to the body area and the age of the person.

Keywords: LC-OCT in vivo imaging, dermal-epidermal junction, epidermis, papillary dermis, collagen and elastin fibers